David Lee Roth

Roth was born in Bloomington, Indiana, to an ophthalmologist, Nathan Lee Roth, and a teacher, Sibyl Roth. He has two sisters, one of whom is Lisa Roth, creator of the Rockabye Baby! lullaby music.{{cite news| title= How David Lee Roth's Sister Brought Rock & Roll to Kids' Music| first= Jaclyn | last= Trop | date= May 18, 2016 | url= https://fortune.com/2016/05/18/how-david-lee-roths-sister-brought-rock-roll-to-kids-music/ | website= Fortune.com }} The family is of Jewish heritage.{{cite news| url= http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jan/29/entertainment/la-ca-vanhalen-20120129/2|title=When David Lee Roth talks, it's 'A Different Kind of Truth'| page= 2| work=Los Angeles Times| date=January 29, 2012| access-date= February 28, 2012| first= Geoff| last= Boucher| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120305011620/http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jan/29/entertainment/la-ca-vanhalen-20120129/2| archive-date=March 5, 2012| url-status=dead}}{{Cite web |title=Tom Hanks e Katty Perry entre os 'Notáveis dos Açores' |url=https://www.dn.pt/pessoas/tom-hanks-e-katty-perry-entre-os-notaveis-dos-acores-2851494.html |access-date=January 31, 2023 |website= dn.pt |date=October 27, 2012 |language= pt-PT |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20231003141902/https://www.dn.pt/pessoas/tom-hanks-e-katty-perry-entre-os-notaveis-dos-acores-2851494.html |archive-date=October 3, 2023}} Roth's uncle Manny Roth was the owner of Cafe Wha? in New York City. All four of Roth's grandparents were immigrants from Russia and his great-grandfather was a Lithuanian cavalryman.{{Cite book |last=Roth |first=David Lee |title=Crazy from the Heat |year=1997 |edition=1st}} From an early age, Roth had an interest in art, especially film and radio;{{cite news| url= https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/lifestyle/what-i-know-about-women-20130403-2h66p.html | title= What I know about women | newspaper= Brisbane Times | date= April 3, 2013}} he said his first music idol was Al Jolson.

Roth spent much of his youth in New Castle, Indiana. In a 2019 interview with Q95's "Stuck and Gunner" he explained: "My grandparents moved to New Castle in 1913. It's in the sense of humor, the 'get it done' and how we do get it done approach work ethic of Van Halen, frankly. It's a Midwest approach, not some flakey Hollywood horse manure."{{Cite web| url= https://q95.iheart.com/featured/the-gunner-page/content/2019-09-12-van-halens-david-lee-roth-bob-marley-weed-vegas-baby-podcast/|title=Van Halen's David Lee Roth: Bob Marley, Weed & Vegas Baby!| format= podcast |website=Q9.iheart.com |access-date= October 11, 2020}} The Roths also briefly lived in Swampscott, Massachusetts.

In his teens, the family relocated to Pasadena, California. David attended The Webb Schools in Claremont, California, and John Muir High School in Pasadena. Roth's parents arranged for him to receive treatment with a psychiatrist for three years because he was prone to daily bouts of hyperactivity, dubbed "monkey time". Roth also attended a horse ranch for troubled teens to build a sense of responsibility.{{cite interview| url= http://olho.nu/van-halen/files/interviews/1985-04-11_dlr_rolling-stone.htm | title= The Rolling Stone Interview: David Lee Roth| website= Rolling Stone| date= April 1985| via= olho.nu | interviewer= | accessdate=}} While attending Pasadena City College, he met the Van Halen brothers, Eddie and Alex. During this period, Roth worked as a hospital orderly.{{cite web |url= http://www.davidleeroth.com/bio/david-lee-roth.php |title=Diamond David Lee Roth Biography |website= davidleeroth.com | publisher= |access-date=August 10, 2011 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110728070709/http://www.davidleeroth.com/bio/david-lee-roth.php |archive-date=July 28, 2011 }}

File:David Lee Roth - Van Halen.jpg

In his late teens, Roth was singing solo, as well as with an R&B-influenced rock band named the Red Ball Jets. Roth says the name was in reference to the red dye used in food at that time, including red candy balls, which would exacerbate his hyperactivity and lead to "monkey hour" at the family home. (Red Ball Jets was also the name of a brand of sneakers popular from 1951 to 1971.){{cite web|url=http://www.skooldays.com/categories/fashion/fa1808.htm|title=Red Ball Jets|website=Skooldays.com|access-date=October 11, 2019}} Another Los Angeles band, Mammoth (featuring Alex Van Halen on drums and Eddie Van Halen singing and playing lead guitar), occasionally rented the Red Ball Jets' PA system for $10/night. After a couple of failed auditions, Roth joined Mammoth as lead singer. In 1974, Mammoth officially changed its name to Van Halen.{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/van-halen-mn0000260206/biography|title=Van Halen | Biography & History|publisher=AllMusic}} According to Roth, this was his brainchild. He felt it was a moniker that offered long-term identity, aesthetic, and marketing advantages, like Santana.{{cite web|url=http://www.answers.com/topic/david-lee-roth |title=David Lee Roth: Information from |website=Answers.com |access-date=August 9, 2011}}

Performing original and cover songs, Van Halen eventually gained success in the Pasadena, West Hollywood, and Los Angeles areas, becoming a regular feature on Sunset Strip clubs, such as Gazzarri's, Myron's, Whisky a Go Go, and the Starwood Club. In 1976, Gene Simmons took note of the band (in particular Eddie Van Halen, whom Simmons hoped to recruit for his own band, Kiss) and assisted them in producing a 10-track demo tape, featuring songs that would be included on their first two LPs and their 1984 album. The tape, however, did not attract much interest from major record labels. In early 1977, however, during their four-month stint at The Starwood, Warner Bros executive Mo Ostin and producer Ted Templeman signed them to an inauspicious two-album contract, one that heavily favored Warner Bros., offering but a .70 per unit royalty. Manager Noel Monk, then an equal partner in band revenue, renegotiated this rate for double in 1979.

Released in 1978, the debut album Van Halen was recorded at Sunset Sound Recorders and immediately earned the band significant national attention and radio airplay. They toured for three months at the bottom of the bill supporting rising superstars Journey and Montrose, then another nine months opening for heavy metal icons Black Sabbath. The album reached number 19 on the Billboard 200 and eventually sold more than 12 million copies by 2014, certified Diamond by the RIAA.

Van Halen recorded four more platinum-selling albums over the next five years, often within 12 to 14 days and immediately returning to the road to tour. Roth is often credited with promoting Van Halen's image, described by David Fricke in Rolling Stone as "a nonstop booze-and-babes party train." Yet despite this 'wildman' image, Roth was key to the band's success not just as a high kicking, tight pantsed, Capezio-wearing singer and lyricist, but as the de facto chairman of the board in band decisions of business, marketing and publicity, according to Monk. Roth's sexy, macho but poetic, often jovial lyrics worked in perfect harmony with the hard rock guitar sounds composed by Eddie Van Halen; a sound-style that helped the band rise to the top of the Billboard pop chart in 1984, with their album 1984, their first and only #1 LP. Looking back at Roth's tenure, Fricke dubbed Van Halen as "the monster rock action squad that ruled the charts and the airwaves for seven years." "I remember hearing about this new band, Van Halen with David Lee Roth," recalled Aerosmith front-man Steven Tyler. "'Who does this fucking guy think he is? He's standing in my limelight.' I'd fucked myself up royally."{{cite magazine|first=David|last=Fricke|title=Talk this way – the Rolling Stone interview with Aerosmith's Steven Tyler|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=November 3, 1994|page=61}}

Despite the band's seven-year financial and artistic success, a creative rift developed between Roth and Eddie Van Halen early on. Roth was interested in popularity via original or even cover songs about partying, dancing, women and sex, along the lines of Aerosmith, AC/DC or even disco, while Eddie wanted darker, deeper tunes in minor keys, like those on their 4th LP Fair Warning. They had been artistic foils on the first three albums, but their fifth LP, Diver Down, saw a disgruntled Edward "sacrificing" his original synthesizer and guitar riffs to five cover songs, three of which became singles: "Dancing in the Street", "Where Have All the Good Times Gone" and "(Oh) Pretty Woman".

In 1983, Eddie designed and constructed a state-of-the-art recording studio in his home with the band's recording engineer, Donn Landee. This led to creative conflict, as it allowed Ed to dominate the recording process without as much input from Roth. Furthermore, he began to experiment in an almost New Wave direction with keyboards and synthesizers, while Roth preferred guitar-heavy hard rock. Their sixth and final album together until 2006, 1984, was a critical and commercial success and continued the band's move toward mainstream pop music.

In early 1985, while still a member of Van Halen, Roth released Crazy from the Heat, an eclectic solo EP of off-beat pop standards. Some months before Roth's departure, Noel Monk, their manager of seven years was fired suddenly by the Van Halen brothers; he speculated that (Roth) was testing the waters for a potential separate, solo career.

According to Monk, Roth formally parted ways with his Van Halen bandmates in August 1985 (although an urban legend persists that it was April 1, April Fool's Day), taking with him 60 Van Halen employees, including VH Head of Security, Ed Andersen. In his 1997 autobiography, Crazy from the Heat, a bitter Roth characterized Van Halen's music just before his 1985 departure as "morose".

In June 1996, Roth briefly reunited with Van Halen, to great public fanfare. He recorded two new songs for Van Halen's Best Of – Volume I, "Can't Get This Stuff No More" and "Me Wise Magic". After an infamous appearance on September 5, 1996, at the MTV Video Music Awards during which Roth and Eddie Van Halen reportedly threatened each other,{{YouTube|9T-w5i-TV5s}} Roth was passed over for Van Halen's vocalist job in favor of Gary Cherone. In 2012, Cherone confirmed the longtime rumor that he had already been chosen long before the MTV incident, suggesting that Van Halen used Roth to create public interest in the hits collection.{{cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/gary-cherone-reflects-on-his-three-year-stint-in-van-halen-20120210|title=Gary Cherone Reflects on his Three-Year Stint In Van Halen|website=Rollingstone.com|date=February 10, 2012}} "Me Wise Magic", Van Halen's display of psychedelia-influenced rock with Roth on vocals, became a No. 1 Billboard Mainstream Rock hit in 1996.

In 2001, rumors circulated that Roth and the members of Van Halen had recorded several new songs together and were attempting yet another reunion. Roth and bassist Michael Anthony later confirmed that information, but nothing came of the music. The demos recorded at the sessions would be reworked in 2012's A Different Kind of Truth, but with Wolfgang Van Halen replacing Anthony.{{Cite web |last=Wilkening |first=Matthew|title=Did Van Halen Almost Finish a David Lee Roth Reunion LP in 2000? |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/van-halen-2000-roth-album/ |access-date=2022-08-17 |website=Ultimate Classic Rock |date=July 21, 2021 |language=en}} A rumored box set did not materialize. Instead, Warner Bros. issued remastered versions of all six early Van Halen studio albums.

In 1984, Roth wished to record a solo EP quickly and shoot a film. "We've created a whole retinue of characters," he noted of his vision with Angelus. "It's a genuine film. It's not 'Dave Singing' or 'Elvis'."{{cite magazine|first= David |last= Swift |title= I laugh to win |magazine= NME |date= December 3, 1988 |page= 21}} Entitled Crazy from the Heat, the EP was released in January 1985, while the film was budgeted at $20 million by CBS Films; however, the project folded after the consolidation of CBS Studios.

In late 1985, now separated from Van Halen, Roth assembled a virtuoso supergroup, consisting of guitarist Steve Vai (previously of Frank Zappa's band), bassist Billy Sheehan (previously of Talas), and drummer Gregg Bissonette (previously of Maynard Ferguson's big band). With veteran Van Halen producer Ted Templeman producing, Roth released his debut solo LP, Eat 'Em and Smile in July 1986. The album saw Roth's return to hard rock music, but incorporated some of his eclectic musical tastes, including a jazz cover of Frank Sinatra's "That's Life" and the bluesy, 1960s hit "Tobacco Road". Eat 'Em and Smile met with widespread commercial and critical success, charting at No. 4 on the Billboard Top 200, selling over 2 million copies{{citation needed|date=May 2022}} in the U.S. alone.[https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/davidleeroth/albums/album/142208/review/5945590/eat_em_and_smile] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014043240/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/davidleeroth/albums/album/142208/review/5945590/eat_em_and_smile|date=October 14, 2008}}{{Failed verification|date=May 2022}} Roth and his band toured arenas extensively in support of Eat 'Em and Smile before returning to the studio in 1987 to record a follow-up album.

In January 1988, Roth released Skyscraper, a more experimental LP featuring the hit single "Just Like Paradise". Co-produced by Roth and Steve Vai under the working title "Cliffhanger", Skyscraper peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard album chart and ultimately sold two million copies{{citation needed|date=May 2022}} in the US. Soon after Skyscraper{{'}}s release, Sheehan left Roth's band due to musical differences.{{cite web| url=http://www.fullinbloommusic.com/billysheehan.html |title=Billy Sheehan, Interview, David Lee Roth, Talas, Mr. Big, Van Halen |website= Fullinbloommusic.com |access-date= August 9, 2011}} He was replaced in time for the album's support tour with bassist Matt Bissonette (drummer Gregg Bissonette's brother).{{cite web| url=http://waddywachtelinfo.com/bretttuggledavidleeroth.html |title=David Lee Roth – Albums and Tours |website= Waddywachtelinfo.com |access-date=August 9, 2011}} The international Skyscraper Tour arena was a major production featuring, at different points during each concert, Roth surfing above the audience on a surfboard suspended from an arena's rafters, and lowered into the center of each arena in a descending boxing ring. Both parts of the stage show were featured in the "Just Like Paradise" music video.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_617227&v=I4qh_9vH1Ww&feature=iv |title=David Lee Roth – Just Like Paradise HD |via= YouTube |date=February 17, 2010 |access-date=August 9, 2011}} The show also featured the band in a calypso segment playing Caribbean steel drums and in an unplugged segment where the band performed acoustic covers of old rock and roll songs.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOzOpsghhs0&feature=player_embedded |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/KOzOpsghhs0| archive-date=December 12, 2021 |url-status=live|title=David Lee Roth – I've Just Seen A Face |date=March 10, 2007 |via= YouTube |access-date=August 9, 2011}}{{cbignore}} Following the tour for Skyscraper, Vai left Roth's band to pursue a solo career and record and tour with Whitesnake.

Roth hired 19-year-old guitar virtuoso Jason Becker to replace Vai prior to recording his third solo LP, A Little Ain't Enough in 1991. A hard rock album produced by Bob Rock, A Little Ain't Enough achieved RIAA gold status shortly after its January 1991 release. Before starting a support tour for A Little Ain't Enough, Becker was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease, rendering him unable to perform onstage. Guitarist Joe Holmes stood in for Becker during the tour. Later in 1991, Nirvana and grunge rock emerged, altering popular tastes and suddenly making Roth's brand of hard rock seem unfashionable. Roth's band fractured shortly following the tour's completion.

In April 1993, Roth was arrested in New York City's Washington Square Park for buying what he described as "$10 worth of Jamaican bunk reefer" from an undercover police officer. The arrest made headlines{{cite news| url= https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE1DB1438F934A25757C0A965958260 |title=David Lee Roth Is Arrested|newspaper=The New York Times |date=April 17, 1993 |access-date=August 9, 2011}} and became a late-night television punch-line. When asked by Howard Stern whether the bust was a publicity stunt, Roth said, "Howard, in New York City this small of a bust is a $35 traffic citation. It literally says 'Buick, Chevy, Other'. Your dog poops on the sidewalk, it's $50. If I was looking for publicity, I would have pooped on the sidewalk."

In March 1994, Roth released Your Filthy Little Mouth, a musically-eclectic album produced by Nile Rodgers. The album failed to achieve significant critical or commercial success, proving to be Roth's first solo effort not to achieve RIAA Gold or Platinum status shortly after its release. Roth played smaller venues in the U.S., and larger venues in Europe on a support tour.

In 1995, Roth returned with an adult lounge act, performing largely in Las Vegas casinos, with a brass band that featured Nile Rodgers, Edgar Winter, and members of the Miami Sound Machine. It also featured several exotic dancers, who in Roth's words were "so sweet, I bet they shit sugar!"{{cite web | url= http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2392 | title= Unchained: David Lee Roth and the Mambo Slammers: VegasTripping News Desk | website= VegasTripping.com | access-date= August 9, 2011 | archive-date= July 26, 2011 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110726115511/http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2392 | url-status= dead }} In 1997, Roth wrote a memoir, Crazy from the Heat. The 359-page book was a selected collection of 1,200 pages of monologues, which were recorded and transcribed by a Princeton University graduate who followed Roth for almost a year. Henry Rollins is said to have worked on the memoir.{{Cite web |date=March 6, 2022 |title=Henry Rollins: 'Mark Twain Meets Groucho Marx, Who's Also A Black Belt…That's David Lee Roth' |url=https://www.vhnd.com/2022/03/06/henry-rollins-mark-twain-meets-groucho-marx-whos-also-a-black-belt-thats-david-lee-roth/ |access-date=April 6, 2023 |website=Van Halen News Desk |language=en-US}}

In 1998, Roth released DLR Band, another album of original material. The album featured a popular song, "Slam Dunk", which, like a majority of the album, was co-written by rising guitarist and longtime Roth fan, John 5. The album was considered a return to form for Roth by critics. In 1999, Roth contacted the Songs of Love Foundation asking if he would be able to sing a song for an ailing child. He went on to record a "Song of Love" for 9-year-old Ashley Abernathy who was battling leukemia, which was released publicly many years later.{{cite web |date=April 12, 2006 |title=Songs of Love is a Hit on the David Lee Roth Radio Show!! |url=http://www.songsoflove.org/article/?vid=4921445073490152214 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140420074456/http://www.songsoflove.org/article/?vid=4921445073490152214 |archive-date=April 20, 2014 |access-date=April 19, 2014 |website=Songsoflove.org}} In the late 1990s, Roth became an emergency medical technician (EMT) in New York City, going on over 200 ambulance rides.Martinez, Erika. [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,138684,00.html "David Lee Roth a NYC Paramedic"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080704160612/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,138684,00.html |date=July 4, 2008 }}, New York Post on FoxNews.com, November 16, 2004. Roth's EMT training was largely handled by Linda Reissman, who detailed this on an episode of The DLR Cast podcast.{{Cite web |title=The DLR Cast: Episode 53: A Little Bit More Vegas & An Interview With Dave's EMT Trainer on Apple Podcasts |url=https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-53-a-little-bit-more-vegas-an-interview/id1522076433?i=1000548178839 |access-date=April 6, 2023 |website=Apple Podcasts |language=en-US}}

In 2002, The "Song for Song: The Heavyweight Champions of Rock and Roll Tour" paired Roth with his 'nemesis' Sammy Hagar, and it proceeded to revive the career of Roth.{{Cite web|url=https://rockcelebrities.net/when-sammy-hagar-made-temporary-peace-with-david-lee-roth/|title=When Sammy Hagar Made 'Temporary' Peace With David Lee Roth - Rock Celebrities|date=June 7, 2022}} Despite the monetary success and publicity generated by the tour, Roth's future with Van Halen seemed uncertain. "Yankee Rose" appeared in the 2002 videogame Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, playing on rock station V-Rock, while generally, Roth became more visible than he had been in years, such as appearing on commercials for MTV with Justin Timberlake.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}} In 2003, Roth released an album called Diamond Dave, which included one original John 5 collaboration among numerous cover songs.

{{main article|The David Lee Roth Show}}

File:David Lee Roth 2007-11-10 (1).jpg

In 2004, Roth appeared on the TV series The Sopranos as a poker-playing guest of Tony Soprano. Regarding this, Roth was quoted on his website as saying, "Mom says I'm going to look like Lee Marvin in 10 years whether I'm in movies or not, so I might as well get after it!" On July 4, 2004, Roth performed with the world-renowned Boston Pops Orchestra at Boston's annual Pops Goes the Fourth celebration. The performance was witnessed by over 100,000 people live in Boston, and by millions more on US television. In 2006, Roth covered two Van Halen songs for an album titled Strummin' with the Devil, a tribute to his old band in bluegrass style. The album topped out at 66 on the U.S. Billboard country charts.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/various-artists|title=Various Artists Strummin' With The Devil: The Southern Side Of Van Halen Chart History|magazine=Billboard|access-date=January 1, 2020}}

In 2006, Roth was tapped to replace his friend Howard Stern on terrestrial radio, following Stern's departure from terrestrial to Sirius Satellite Radio. Roth's show lasted for four months and ended in a lawsuit. During the course of the show, Roth maintained a relationship with Howard 100 News reporter Steve Langford. Roth and Langford met frequently after shows, with Langford bringing tape back to Stern of Roth's complaints towards WXRK's management. Issues included Roth's firing, the missing podcast, and his show being cut off early. On Roth's final day, April 21, 2006, he performed the Rolling Stones song "You Can't Always Get What You Want" for Stern and discussed an impending lawsuit against CBS.

Later, on October 14, 2012, Roth began broadcasting a video webcast/podcast on his YouTube channel, Spotify and iTunes.{{cite magazine |last=Baltin |first=Steve |date=February 12, 2013 |title=QA: David Lee Roth Vents About Van Halen's Future |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/q-a-david-lee-roth-vents-about-van-halens-future-20130212 |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=April 19, 2014}}

On January 24, 2007, after much anticipation, Billboard.com reported that Roth would rejoin Van Halen for a 40-date arena and amphitheater tour in mid-2007.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1055749/exclusive-van-halen-reuniting-with-roth-for-tour |title=Exclusive: Van Halen Reuniting With Roth For Tour |magazine=Billboard.com |access-date=August 10, 2011}} This report, among many others, was confirmed with an official press release posted on the official Van Halen website on February 2, 2007.

On February 2, 2007, the official Van Halen website released information that Roth had rejoined the band along with current members Alex, Eddie, and Valerie Bertinelli's and Eddie's teenage son, Wolfgang Van Halen. On March 8 the official Van Halen website posted a letter from Eddie Van Halen stating that he did not feel he could perform his absolute best, and the tour with Roth would be postponed.

In March 2007 five members of Van Halen (the four original members and Sammy Hagar) were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Van Halen brothers did not attend due to Eddie's condition. Roth was to perform with the band Velvet Revolver; however, conflict with the band caused his part to be canceled. Roth subsequently did not attend the induction, leaving only Michael Anthony and Sammy Hagar to represent Van Halen. Both Anthony and Hagar thanked Roth publicly for his contribution to the band during the awards acceptance. Roth did not attend the ceremony and the event was considered yet another public embarrassment for the band.{{cite web |last=Boudreau |first=Mark |url=http://rockandrollreport.com/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-induction-ceremony-hits-highs-and-lows-while-the-van-halen-saga-continues/ |title=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony hits highs and lows while the Van Halen saga continues |publisher=The Rock and Roll Report |date=March 13, 2007 |access-date=April 24, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714114911/http://rockandrollreport.com/rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-induction-ceremony-hits-highs-and-lows-while-the-van-halen-saga-continues/ |archive-date=July 14, 2014 |url-status=dead }} The conflict was rumored to be based on song selection. Roth wanted to perform "Jump", the band's highest-charting song, but Velvet Revolver would only agree to play "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" or "You Really Got Me". When it was finally agreed upon that Paul Shaffer would perform "Jump", Roth claimed there was no longer enough time to rehearse and opted not to attend the ceremony.

On August 13, 2007, six months after the initial reunion tour was postponed, it was finally confirmed by Van Halen with Roth at a press conference in Los Angeles that they would start the tour again in September 2007. At that conference, Eddie Van Halen stated that he and Roth were "like brothers" now. Calling Van Halen a "real band", both Van Halen and Roth spoke of the possibility of further worldwide touring and a new album in mind for the future.

On June 5, 2008, Van Halen announced that the 2007–2008 tour with Roth grossed more than $93 million, a record for the rock band. Van Halen played to nearly one million people during 74 arena shows throughout the United States and Canada, beginning September 27, 2007, in Charlotte, North Carolina, and wrapping June 3, 2008, in Quebec City, QC, for the 400th anniversary of the city.

File:Van Halen-8568 (20633990642).jpg

In December 2011, Van Halen announced a 2012 tour with Roth.{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/van-halen-announces-2012-tour-with-david-lee-roth/|title=Van Halen Announces 2012 tour with David Lee Roth |work=CBS News}} The new Roth-fronted Van Halen album A Different Kind of Truth was released on February 7, 2012, and a tour commenced that month.

In March 2015, a new live album was released, Tokyo Dome Live in Concert, recorded in June 2013 during the A Different Kind of Truth Tour. That same month, the band made its first foray into American television by appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, announcing a new tour in the process.{{cite web |url=http://www.vhnd.com/2015/03/24/van-halen-to-tour-north-america-summerfall-2015-perform-on-jimmy-kimmel/ |title=VAN HALEN Announce 2015 Tour, Jimmy Kimmel Performance|author= |date= March 24, 2015|website= vhnd.com|access-date=April 3, 2015}}

Van Halen disbanded after Eddie's death from cancer on October 6, 2020.{{cite magazine |last1=Hiatt |first1=Brian |date=November 16, 2020 |title=Van Halen Considered Reunion Tour With Both David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/eddie-van-halen-vault-wolfgang-interview-1090873/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=November 16, 2020}}

In 2014, Roth had recorded sessions with John 5 on guitar.{{Cite web |date=May 10, 2019 |title=This Unreleased David Lee Roth + John 5 Clip Sounds Amazing |url=https://loudwire.com/unreleased-david-lee-roth-john-5-clip/ |access-date=January 15, 2020 |website=Loudwire |language=en-US}} Roth claimed in October 2019 the album would soon be released.{{Cite web |date=October 1, 2019 |title=David Lee Confirms New Album With John 5 Will Eventually Be Released |url=https://loudwire.com/david-lee-roth-album-john-5-released/ |access-date=January 15, 2020 |website=Loudwire |language=en-US}} As of 2025, the record had yet to see the light of day, though several singles were put out online.

In October 2020, Roth paid tribute to his late bandmate Eddie Van Halen by sharing his track "Somewhere Over the Rainbow Bar and Grill," from the 2014 sessions. It was the first of five singles from the sessions released between late-2020 and early-2022.

Roth went on an American tour with Kiss in early-2020, having been tapped as the opening act for the band in 43 cities.{{Cite magazine |last1=Greene |first1=Andy |date=December 17, 2019 |title=David Lee Roth to Open the 2020 Leg of the Kiss Farewell Tour |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/david-lee-roth-kiss-tour-928172/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US |access-date=January 31, 2021}} Nearly halfway into the scheduled dates, the tour was postponed due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.

In October 2021, Roth announced his intentions to retire from performing following a final residency set at the House of Blues Las Vegas at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas from December 2021 to January 2022 that would be a total of nine dates.{{cite web |date=October 1, 2021 |title=David Lee Roth Is Retiring After New Year's Las Vegas Residency: "These Are My Last Five Shows" |url=https://consequence.net/2021/10/david-lee-roth-retiring-after-vegas-residency/ |access-date=October 1, 2021 |website=Consequence of Sound}}{{Cite web |last=Irwin |first=Corey |title=David Lee Roth: 'I'm Retiring' |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/david-lee-roth-retiring/ |access-date=October 8, 2021 |website=Ultimateclassicrock.com|date=October 2021 }} The shows were eventually cancelled due to Covid, with Roth ostensibly going into retirement and a March 2020 performance in Texas with Kiss being his final performance.{{Cite magazine |last=Greene |first=Andy |date=January 4, 2022 |title=Flashback: David Lee Roth Sings 'Jump' at Possible Final Solo Concert |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/david-lee-roth-jump-van-halen-retirement-1278209/ |access-date=February 11, 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}

Following his supposed retirement from performing and the release of five original singles, Roth proceeded to release a series of covers of Van Halen songs throughout the second half of 2022.{{Cite web |last=Iahn |first=Buddy |date=December 26, 2022 |title=David Lee Roth shares 2022 version of Van Halen's 'Everybody Wants Some' |url=https://themusicuniverse.com/david-lee-roth-shares-2022-version-van-halens-everybody-wants-some/ |access-date=February 11, 2023 |website=The Music Universe |language=en-US}}

Roth performed his first public concert in five years at the M3 Rock Festival in Columbia, Maryland, on May 3, 2025, playing a set of all Van Halen classics and deep cuts. He subsequently announced a US tour for the summer of 2025.{{Cite web |last=Kaufman |first=Spencer |date=May 5, 2025 |title=David Lee Roth Performs All Van Halen Classics at First Full Show in Five Years: Watch |url=https://consequence.net/2025/05/david-lee-roth-van-halen-classics-first-full-show-five-years/ |access-date=May 8, 2025 |website=Consequence of Sound |language=en-US}}

Roth has never married.{{cite web |url=https://www.vhnd.com/2013/04/06/dlr-reveals/ |title=David Lee Roth reveals he's in love, opens up about his troubled childhood |work=vhnd.com |date=April 6, 2013 |access-date=July 13, 2020}} He dated actress Apollonia Kotero in the 1980s.{{Cite web|date=June 2, 2021|title=Appolonia Says Prince Didn't Want Her Dating David Lee Roth In Public While 'Purple Rain' Was In Theaters|url=https://www.vhnd.com/2021/06/02/appolonia-says-prince-didnt-want-her-dating-david-lee-roth-in-public-while-purple-rain-was-in-theaters/|access-date=November 29, 2021|website=Van Halen News Desk|language=en-US}}{{Cite book|last1=Blackwood|first1=Nina|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ghym_LYKzlIC&dq=lee+roth+apollonia&pg=PA165|title=VJ: The Unplugged Adventures of MTV's First Wave|last2=Goodman|first2=Mark|last3=Hunter|first3=Alan|last4=Quinn|first4=Martha|date=May 7, 2013|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=978-1-4516-7812-3|pages=165|language=en}} In a 2013 interview, he said he had four great loves in his life, but would not name them out of respect for his privacy. He said during the 20 years of Van Halen, he "slept with every pretty girl with two legs."

In 2018, Roth and tattoo artist Ami James created INK the Original, which was a line of skincare products designed to protect tattooed skin.{{cite web|first=Bee |last=Shapiro |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/19/style/tattoo-skin-care-david-lee-roth.html |title=Is David Lee Roth the Estée Lauder of Tattoos? |work=The New York Times|date=December 19, 2018 |access-date=December 28, 2018}} Roth spent more than 300 hours getting tattooed in Japan between 2013 and 2014, and noticed the body art market was expanding.{{cite web|first=Corey |last=Seymour |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/david-lee-roth-ink-tattoo-van-halen |title=131 Totally Uncensored Minutes With David Lee Roth, From His New Tattoo Skin-Care Line to the Secret of Van Halen |work=Vogue |date=December 11, 2018 |access-date=December 28, 2018}} After investing more than $7,000,000 in the company, and countless hours, the business closed in March 2022 for reasons not stated.{{cite news |title=DAVID LEE ROTH's Skin-Care Line INK THE ORIGINAL Closes Its Doors |url=https://www.blabbermouth.net/news/david-lee-roths-skin-care-line-ink-the-original-closes-its-doors/ |agency=Blabbermouth.net |date=2022}}

Roth maintains residences in Los Angeles, New York City and Tokyo. In 2004, he trained as a state-licensed emergency medical technician in New York.{{cite web |title=David Lee Roth Trains to Become Paramedic |url=https://www.hmpgloballearningnetwork.com/site/emsworld/news/10340958/david-lee-roth-trains-become-paramedic |website=HMP Global |access-date=May 14, 2024 |date=November 15, 2004}} In 2012 he said, "I probably have over 200 9-1-1 calls on my ticket in the last six years alone. I live a very different life away from music."{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/feb/02/david-lee-roth-van-halen |title=David Lee Roth: 'I've been rich and I've been poor. Rich is better' |work=The Guardian |first=Michael |last=Hann |date=February 2, 2012 |access-date=July 13, 2020}} He is a martial artist, has been training in kenjutsu since he was twelve years old, and also practices kenpō and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.{{cite web|url=http://fightland.vice.com/blog/david-lee-roth-is-the-best-martial-artist-in-rock|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150411012506/http://fightland.vice.com/blog/david-lee-roth-is-the-best-martial-artist-in-rock|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 11, 2015|title=David Lee Roth is the best martial artist in rock|work=Vice|first=Sarah|last=Kurchak|date=April 9, 2015|access-date=October 23, 2020}} Since 2006, Roth is a licensed private pilot for rotorcraft-helicopter.{{Cite web |title=David Lee Roth - Trivia |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0744822/trivia/ |access-date=2024-11-29 |website=IMDb |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Instagram |url=https://www.instagram.com/tom_camuso/p/BrXV6rZFtZw/?img_index=1 |access-date=2024-11-29 |website=www.instagram.com}}{{Cite web |title=Facebook |url=https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=743475004656823&id=100069829906543&set=a.580078874329771 |access-date=2024-11-29 |website=www.facebook.com}}

Roth is a visual artist working in painting and drawings with a theme of social commentary.{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/13/arts/music/david-lee-roth-art.html |title=David Lee Roth Is Letting His Art (Mostly) Do the Talking |work=The New York Times |first=Richard |last=Bienstock |date=July 13, 2020 |access-date=July 13, 2020}}

{{See also|The David Lee Roth Band}}

• Guitars Steve Vai (1986–1989)
• Bass guitar Billy Sheehan (1986–1988)
• Percussion Gregg Bissonette (1986–1989)

{{#tag:timeline|

ImageSize = width:1000 height:auto barincrement:20

PlotArea = left:100 bottom:80 top:0 right:0

Alignbars = justify

DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy

Period = from:01/01/1984 till:{{#time:d/m/Y}}

TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy

Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4

ScaleMajor = increment:3 start:1984

ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1984

Colors =

id:vocals value:red legend:Lead_vocals

id:guitar value:green legend:Guitar

id:bass value:blue legend:Bass

id:drums value:orange legend:Drums

id:keys value:purple legend:Keys

id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album

id:bestof value:gray(0.6) legend:Compilation_album

id:bars value:gray(0.95)

BackgroundColors = bars:bars

BarData =

bar:Dave text:David Lee Roth

bar:Vai text:Steve Vai

bar:Jason text:Jason Becker

bar:Steve text:Steve Hunter

bar:Desi text:Desi Rexx

bar:Joe text:Joe Holmes

bar:Terry text:Terry Kilgore

bar:Rocket text:Rocket Ritchotte

bar:Mike text:Mike Hartman

bar:Bart text:Bart Walsh

bar:Brian text:Brian Young

bar:Toshi text:Toshi Hiketa

bar:Al text:Al Estrada

bar:Jake text:Jake Faun

bar:Frankie text:Frankie Lindia

bar:Billy text:Billy Sheehan

bar:Matt text:Matt Bissonette

bar:Todd text:Todd Jensen

bar:JohnR text:John Regan

bar:JamesH text:James Hunting

bar:John5 text:John 5

bar:James text:James LoMenzo

bar:Ryan text:Ryan Wheeler

bar:Gregg text:Gregg Bissonette

bar:Ron text:Ron Wikso

bar:Larry text:Larry Aberman

bar:Joseph text:Joseph Hudson

bar:Ray text:Ray Luzier

bar:Jimmy text:Jimmy DeGrasso

bar:MikeM text:Mike Musselman

bar:Francis text:Francis Valentino

bar:Jesse text:Jesse Harms

bar:Brett text:Brett Tuggle

bar:Richard text:Richard Hilton

bar:BillyT text:Billy Thompson

bar:Patrick text:Patrick Howard I

bar:Marcus text:Marcus Margand II

bar:Danny text:Danny Wagner

LineData =

layer:back

color:bestof

at:28/10/1997

at:19/11/2013

layer:back

color:studio

at:28/01/1985

at:07/07/1986

at:26/01/1988

at:15/01/1991

at:08/03/1994

at:09/06/1998

at:08/07/2003

PlotData =

width:11

color:vocals

bar:Dave from:start till:end

color:guitar

bar:Al from:01/01/2019 till:31/12/2021

bar:Jake from:01/01/2020 till:31/12/2020

bar:Frankie from:01/01/2020 till:31/12/2020

bar:Brian from:01/01/2002 till:31/12/2006

bar:Toshi from:01/01/2003 till:31/12/2006

bar:Bart from:01/01/1999 till:31/12/2001

bar:Mike from:01/01/1998 till:31/12/1998

bar:John5 from:01/01/1998 till:31/12/1998 width:3

bar:John5 from:01/01/2012 till:31/12/2012

bar:John5 from:01/01/2019 till:31/12/2019

bar:Steve from:01/01/1990 till:31/12/1992

bar:Steve from:01/01/1997 till:31/12/1997

bar:Rocket from:01/01/1993 till:01/01/1994

bar:Terry from:01/01/1993 till:31/12/1994

bar:Joe from:01/01/1991 till:31/12/1992

bar:Jason from:01/01/1990 till:31/12/1991

bar:Vai from:01/01/1985 till:31/12/1989

color:bass

bar:Ryan from:01/01/2020 till:31/12/2020

bar:Todd from:01/01/1990 till:31/12/1991

bar:Todd from:01/01/1999 till:31/12/2000

bar:Todd from:01/01/2004 till:31/12/2006

bar:James from:01/01/2001 till:31/12/2004

bar:John5 from:01/01/1998 till:31/12/1998

bar:JohnR from:01/01/1994 till:30/06/1994

bar:JamesH from:01/07/1994 till:31/12/1994

bar:Matt from:01/01/1988 till:31/12/1990

bar:Billy from:01/01/1985 till:31/12/1988

color:drums

bar:Francis from:01/07/2020 till:31/12/2020

bar:MikeM from:01/01/2019 till:30/06/2020

bar:Jimmy from:01/01/2006 till:31/12/2006

bar:Ray from:01/01/1997 till:31/12/2000

bar:Ray from:01/01/2001 till:31/12/2005

bar:Ron from:01/01/1993 till:30/06/1994

bar:Larry from:01/07/1994 till:31/12/1994

bar:Joseph from:01/01/1993 till:31/12/1994

bar:Joseph from:01/01/1995 till:31/12/1997

bar:Gregg from:01/01/1985 till:31/12/1992

color:keys

bar:Jesse from:01/01/1986 till:31/12/1986

bar:Brett from:01/01/1988 till:30/06/1994

bar:Richard from:01/07/1994 till:31/12/1995

bar:BillyT from:01/01/1996 till:31/12/1998

bar:Brett from:01/01/1997 till:31/12/1997

bar:Patrick from:01/01/1998 till:31/12/1999

bar:Marcus from:01/01/2000 till:31/12/2001

bar:Danny from:01/01/2020 till:31/12/2020

}}

{{col-float-begin}}

{{col-float-break}}

• Al Estrada - lead guitar (2019–present){{Cite web|url=https://www.vhnd.com/2020/01/08/david-lee-roths-opening-night/|title=David Lee Roth Kicks Off 2020 Vegas Residency: Photos, Video, Setlist|date=January 8, 2020|website=Van Halen News Desk|language=en-US|access-date=January 15, 2020}}
• Jake Faun - rhythm guitar (2020)
• Frankie Lindia - rhythm guitar (2020)
• Brian Young - lead guitar (2002–2006)
• Toshi Hiketa - rhythm guitar (2003–2006)
• Bart Walsh (1999–2001) (died 2019)
• Mike Hartman (1998) (died 2000)
• John 5 (1998, 2012, 2019)
• Steve Hunter (1990–1992, 1997)
• Terry Kilgore (1993–1994)
• Rocket Ritchotte (1993–1994)
• Joe Holmes (1991–1992)
• Desi Rexx (1991, a few shows in Europe only){{Cite web|url=https://www.cityweekly.net/utah/rsolved/Content?oid=5565015|title=R'Solved|last=Harward|first=Randy|website=Salt Lake City Weekly|language=en|access-date=January 15, 2020}}
• Jason Becker (1990–1991)
• Steve Vai (1985–1989)

• Ryan Wheeler (2020–present)
• Todd Jensen (1990–1991, 1999–2000, 2004–2006)
• James LoMenzo (2001–2004)
• B'urbon Bob (1998)—pseudonym for John 5
• John Regan (1994)
• James Hunting (1993–1994)
• Matt Bissonette (1988–1990)
• Billy Sheehan (1985–1988)

{{col-float-break}}

• Francis Valentino (2020–present)
• Mike Musselman (2019–2020)
• Jimmy DeGrasso (2006)
• Ray Luzier (1997–2000, 2001–2005)
• Ron Wikso (1993–1994)
• Larry Aberman (1994)
• Joseph Hudson (1993–1994, 1995–1997)
• Gregg Bissonette (1985–1992)

• Danny Wagner (2020-Present)Danny Wagner is the keyboardist who performed with Warrant, not the drummer from Greta Van Fleet.
• Marcus Margand II (2000–2001)
• Patrick Howard I (1998–1999)
• Billy Thompson (1996–1998)
• Richard Hilton (1994–1995)
• Brett Tuggle (1988–1994, 1997) (died 2022)
• Jesse Harms (1986)

{{col-float-end}}

{{Main article|David Lee Roth discography}}

• Eat 'Em and Smile (1986)
• Skyscraper (1988)
• A Little Ain't Enough (1991)
• Your Filthy Little Mouth (1994)
• DLR Band (1998)
• Diamond Dave (2003)

• Crazy from the Heat (1985)

{{Main article|Van Halen discography}}

• Van Halen (1978)
• Van Halen II (1979)
• Women and Children First (1980)
• Fair Warning (1981)
• Diver Down (1982)
• 1984 (1984)
• A Different Kind of Truth (2012)

• {{Cite book |last=Roth |first=David Lee |year=1997 |title=Crazy from the Heat |title-link=Crazy from the Heat (book) |publisher=Hyperion |isbn=0-7868-8947-0}}

{{Reflist|group="nb"}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{Cite web |last=Kandell |first=Steve |date=April 12, 2013 |title=David Lee Roth Will Not Go Quietly |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/stevekandell/david-lee-roth-will-not-go-quietly |work=Buzzfeed}}

{{Sister project links|d=Q313992|c=Category:David Lee Roth|n=no|b=no|v=no|voy=no|m=no|mw=no|species=no|s=no|wikt=no}}

• {{official website}}
• {{allMusic}}
• {{IMDb name|0744822}}

{{S-start}}

{{Succession box

|title=Lead singer of Van Halen

|before=Eddie Van Halen
Sammy Hagar
Sammy Hagar

|years=1974–1985
1996
2006–2020

|after=Sammy Hagar
Gary Cherone
Final}}

{{S-end}}

{{David Lee Roth}}

{{Van Halen}}

{{2007 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roth, David Lee}}

Category:1954 births

Category:20th-century American male singers

Category:21st-century American male singers

Category:American hard rock musicians

Category:American male non-fiction writers

Category:American people of Russian-Jewish descent

Category:American radio personalities

Category:American rock singers

Category:The David Lee Roth Band members

Category:Glam metal musicians

Category:Hard rock singers

Category:Jewish American non-fiction writers

Category:Jewish American rock musicians

Category:Jewish heavy metal musicians

Category:Jewish American singers

Category:Living people

Category:Magna Carta Records artists

Category:Musicians from Bloomington, Indiana

Category:Musicians from Pasadena, California

Category:Pasadena City College alumni

Category:People from Swampscott, Massachusetts

Category:Singers from Indiana

Category:Van Halen members

Category:Writers from Bloomington, Indiana